This invention relates to alarm systems, and in particular to an alarm for visually indicating activation of an alarm, even if the alarm is no longer being activated.
The invention is particularly suitable for use with sump pumps, and even more particularly for use with auxiliary sump pumps which are employed to supplement a sump pump, since all sump pumps eventually fail. The invention can also be used in combination with a combined smoke and water level alarm to provide an indication of activation of the alarm, even if the alarm was activated in the absence of human monitoring and the activation has since ceased. This could be due to a low battery signal, which has ceased because the battery is completely drained.
Sump pumps have finite lives, and even while a sump pump maybe perfectly serviceable, if there is a power failure, even the best sump pump is of no value. Also, if a sump pump becomes wholly or partially clogged for any reason, its value is diminished. Thus, often battery-operated auxiliary sump pumps are employed to back up an electrically operated sump pump which fails to operate for any reason, or fails to handle the quantity of water entering the sump pit.
Often the sump pit is located in a basement in proximity to other mechanical equipment, such as a furnace. In many instances, a smoke alarm is employed in the vicinity of such equipment, and the smoke alarm can be combined with a water level alarm in the sump pit so that the alarm will generate a signal responsive to either smoke or an abnormal water level in the sump pit, or a low battery condition in the alarm.